About Us

How it Works

The Oregon Pasture Network (OPN) is a program of Friends of Family Farmers. OPN is a community of farmers, ranchers, food business owners and consumers who believe that sustainable, humane, pasture-raised, animal agriculture is the best way to produce animal products. By coming together, we support the growth of pasture-based farming in our state.

When farmers fill out an application and take the Pasture Network Pledge, they become a member of the Friends of Family Farmers community and together work to practice and promote agricultural practices that put a high value on family farms, animal welfare, public health, the planet and our local rural economies.  If you are a farmer or rancher interested in joining the OPN, learn more here. By joining this network, farmers and ranchers gain access to a network of pastured producers, exclusive educational opportunities and promotion through our producer directory.

Being part of the Oregon Pasture Network means that they bring quality, sustainably raised meat, dairy, eggs and other animal products to their customers with an eye to the future and an ethos of constant improvement.  Support the pasture based producers in OPN’s network near you by searching in our directory.  When eaters buy their food in conventional grocery stores, they divide that purchase price among all the levels of the supply chain.  When eaters buy their food directly from the farmers, they give that producer 100% of their dollars.  The producers in our network care for both the land and the animals.  When you buy directly from them you are caring for the farmers and their families as well.

OPN is a community of practice, not a certification. We do not set specific stocking densities or require certain practices, but rather evaluate the overall health of the forage, soil, and animals within a pasture based system to evaluate our applicants. We are a community of farmers and ranchers who value education and constant improvement of pasture based enterprises in Oregon. OPN encourages our members to pursue other certifications in addition to membership with us, but does not require all our members to approach farming the same way as long as the health of the whole ecosystem of the farm is good.